Bidets

A bidet is a bathroom fixture that looks like a toilet but is equipped with a small bidet faucet. The faucet sprays a stream of water that will cleanse the area in need. The water can be a substitution for toilet paper and some people even use a bidet faucet to clean their feet. Bidets are popular among men and women living in European and Asian countries because of their many health benefits.
A bidet faucet can also be hooked up to a traditional toilet. Another option is a bidet style toilet seat. The toilet seat functions as a bidet with water pressure and temperature controls. The bidet style toilet seat pictured below also features a light for nighttime use, an activating sensor, and an energy saving function.
View more bidets, bidet faucets, and bidet style toilet seats.

Clawfoot Tub Foot Coasters

One concern that comes with the purchase of a clawfoot bathtub is how to keep the bathroom floor in good condition. A good option to avoid floor scratches are clawfoot tub foot coasters.

Foot coasters are the "perfect solution to keep [your] tub from scratching tile floors" according to customer Linda K. from Easley, South Carolina. She used them under the clawfoot bathtub in her guest bathroom pictured below.


Another customer, from Ontario, Canada told us about his remodeling project and how the clawfoot bathtub coasters came in handy:

"Reclaiming the tub, left me with such a gem that I wanted to set it apart & elevate it a little bit more, and these coasters were just the ticket. Lifting the tub by about an inch let me showcase the hardware I'd added without making the tub itself inaccessible. The exposed plumbing, prominently visible through the open bathroom door, becomes an accessible, proud and central element of retro styling."

Check out the photo he submitted below.

View clawfoot tub foot coasters, clawfoot bathtubs and replacement clawfoot tub feet.

Top 3 Reasons to Install a Custom Stone Shower

1. One day installation - With the shower system come

detailed, step by step instructions to take you smoothly through the installation process in only one day. The shower can transform the look of your bathroom over the weekend and still have time to relax after.

2. Flexible Design - The custom shower system can be installed in any bathroom because it is available in different shapes and sizes. The location of the door, faucet, and accent panels can be placed according to your bathroom layout. You can also customize your shower by installing a bench, shelf, and body spray where you choose.

3. Travertine Stone - The custom, resin-based stone has the look of real travertine stone tiles and a much lower price tag. Another benefit of the custom stone is that it requires little work to maintain.

Space Bathroom

Without gravity, using the bathroom is probably a difficult task. It is obvious that a normal toilet could not be used on a space station. According to How Stuff Works, the bathrooms on space stations are built with leg, foot, and lap restraints that hold astronauts in place. One major difference between space and Earth toilets is the use of air as opposed to water. The air is used to draw waste away, where it is then compacted for disposal upon return to Earth.

Even space bathrooms are in need of a plumber sometimes. A Discovery News article discusses that one toilet located at the International Space Station was not functioning properly. To solve the problem, officials had to make room on a separate shuttle launch for a 1/2 foot long pump and its hardware.

Sources: How Stuff Works
Discovery News

Kitchen Safety Tips

The National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) provides a source of information for professionals and consumers alike. Kitchen and bathroom remodeling guidelines, recommendations and ideas can all be found at the NKBA website.

One article, from the tips and how-to section of the website, discusses kitchen safety. Since the kitchen is a popular gathering place, it should also be kept a safe place. Some good points made in the article that may be overlooked are:

• Use proper lighting, especially in work areas
• Store a fire extinguisher in an easily accessible area
• Regulate your faucet temperature to prevent burns
• Round the edges of counter-tops and islands

Source: National Kitchen & Bath Association

Kitchen Trends

As before, I have compiled a list of trends I have observed in various, current home renovation books and magazines. More specifically, kitchen trends and popular fixtures.

• Bridge Style Kitchen Faucet
• Easy to use, Single Handle Kitchen Faucets
• Convenient Pot Fillers

• Oven Backsplashes
• Water Saving Fixtures
• Decorative Tile Murals

View photos and learn more about each fixture by clicking on it above.

Bathroom Trends

Trying to keep up with bathroom and kitchen trends, I have recently been browsing through a good share of home magazines. Like fashion magazines, these home magazines discuss what’s in style and showcase new designs. Instead of dresses and shoes, the hot topics on the pages of these magazines are things like dishwashers and faucets.

After flipping through magazines like Signature Kitchens and Baths, Bathroom Trends, Kitchen and Bath Planning 2009, and Kitchen and Bath Ideas, I began noticing a pattern. This instance is not only when I realized that I do not have the most up-to-date, trendy kitchen or bathroom, but when I then decided to write about the bathroom and kitchen trends that seemed popular amongst the magazines. Here are my observations of what’s hot in the bathroom world:

• Toilets designed by Japanese company Toto
• Space saving and attractive wall-mounted toilets
• Water saving dual flush toilets
• European-style bidets

• Wall Mounted Faucets
• Above counter vessel sinks
• Corner sinks
• Bathrooms for two people including two shower systems in one enclosure and two sinks within one counter

You can view photos and read more information about each of the trends listed above by clicking on them. Check back soon to see my observations of kitchen trends.

Self Cleaning Bathroom

Cleaning the bathroom is not a task that most of us look forward to. There are an abundance of cleaning products on the market claiming to make the task easier, quicker, or safer for your family and the environment.

A BBC News article discusses the future of bathroom cleaning and disinfecting with the use of nanotechnology. According to the article, scientists in Australia have been developing a coating of light activated nano particles that can be used as a cleaner. The coating would rid bathroom surfaces of E. coli bacteria as well as volatile organic compounds. Additionally, it would prevent fungus growth because of its opposition to water.

One drawback mentioned in the article is whether or not the material could be recycled. The safety of disposal is not yet determined, nor is the amount of energy required for manufacture of the coating.

Source: BBC News

Toilet Tricycle

Every year, at the end of the summer, the city of Philadelphia hosts a festival showcasing various artists and performers. People from all over come to see the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival. Back in 2005, the festival began with an interesting event- a toilet tricycle race.

To participate, artists created a form of transportation using a toilet and a tricycle. I suppose using a one-piece toilet would be the option because the artists can't attach it to anything but the tricycle. Too bad the race only happened one year, it would be very interesting to see a group of toilet tricycle racers.


Sources: Cool Hunting
Philadelphia Live Arts Festival

Banned Album Art

In the past, many album covers have been banned for explicit images. What you may not know however, is that there are two albums that weren't released because their covers depicted unsanitary toilets.

Below, If You Can Believe Your Eyes And Ears by The Mama's and the Papa's, was instead released with a scroll over the image of a toilet (left).


The Rolling Stones' album, Beggars Banquet, featuring the song "Street Fighting Man" was banned for its cover, featuring a run down toilet in an unclean bathroom scene (left). The album art was replaced by the image on the right.

Toilet Paper: Soft but Harmful

Giving up the comfort of ultra soft toilet paper is something Americans are not ready to do. According to research, sales of ultra soft toilet tissue rose 40% in 2008. Additionally, sales of the recycled kind only accounts for 2% here in America, compared to 20% in Europe and Latin America.

Recycled toilet paper is produced at a similar cost as non-recycled, however, without a certain fiber from standing trees, it can not achieve the same level as softness. As a result millions of trees are being used to make the softest toilet tissue.

Greenpeace, an environmental advocacy group, came up with a recycled tissue and toilet paper guide. Factors considered include post consumer product percentage, overall recycled percentage, and the bleaching process. To be recommended by Greenpeace, toilet paper must be 100% recycled content, with 50% of recycled content being post consumer, and bleached without the use of toxic chlorine compounds.

The top choice recommended is Green Forest toilet paper which is a Planet Inc. product. Other very good choices are 365, April Soft, Earth Friendly, Fiesta & Fiesta Green, Natural Value, Seventh Generation, Trader Joe's, CVS Earth Essentials, and Cascades. View the toilet paper guide in full for more information and recommendations.

Sources: Greenpeace
New York Times

The Bathroom Diaries

The Bathroom Diaries is a website that allows you to search for a public restroom in the country, city, and state of your choosing. The site also tells you the whether the bathroom is clean, handicap accessible, and if it is safe. You can also check to see if there is a changing room or if the restroom is aesthetically pleasing.

Don't forget to check out the awards page. The site currently features the public bathrooms in the center of Kawakawaka, Bay of Islands, New Zealand as the winner.

Bathroom Style Quiz

If you currently plan to update or remodel your bathroom, you may want to use a specific theme or style as a guideline. This quiz from Better Homes and Gardens can help you decide the perfect bathroom style. Click below to answer ten multiple choice lifestyle questions, and be on your way to a new bathroom.

Bathroom Style Quiz

Custom Bathtub Color

Since you are putting a good amount of money into your remodeling project, you want everything to be in the right place and have the right feel. If a traditional, white clawfoot tub does not match your taste or your bathroom, we can help. Vintage Tub offers on-site, custom painting of clawfoot bathtubs.

Choose from standard colors,manufacturer's colors,
or choose a custom design.
View more clawfoot tub color options, learn more about custom painting, or send us your own color swatch.